What You Need to Know About California's Proposed TV Efficiency Standards

The Proposed Rules

Up until now, there has never been any sort of regulation on energy use of TVs sold in the U.S. That could change in 2011, when a rule proposed by the California Energy Commission, which has the authority to enact efficiency regulations within California, could go into effect. The mandate would set a ceiling on the energy consumption of television sets that can legally be sold in California. The goal: reduce the energy burden of power-hungry televisions, which currently accounts for about 10 percent of the average homeowner's residential energy bill.

The mandate would have two phases. The first, which would go into effect Jan. 1, 2011, involves an energy reduction of 33 percent of Energy Star 3.0 guidelines. The second standard, slated for Jan. 1, 2013, requires that 49 percent less energy be used. The rule only applies to sets in California with a screen surface area that is less than 1400 square inches (which translates to a roughly 58-inch set). The proposed rule would affect all new televisions, with no distinction between LCD, plasma, DLP, OLED, or CRT sets. A set's energy ceiling would depend upon its screen size, with larger sets allowed to use more energy. The rule would also require manufacturers to label television sets with their energy consumption, similar to the system currently in place with many other home appliances.

Here, we answer questions and dispel rumors about how the rule will effect television use and shopping.

What about my old, energy-inefficient set?

The new rule does nothing to ban or otherwise affect sets that were sold prior to 2011. So consumers can keep using their our old TVs—no matter how inefficient they are.

What about very large sets?

When the mandate was first proposed, there were no exemptions for very large sets. This changed after industry talks.

"The retail industry made a compelling argument, and the technology transfer is that innovation starts with smaller televisions and moves up the chain to larger sets," says Adam Gottlieb, a spokesman for the California Energy Commission. "The majority of televisions sold are under 58 inches, and so we exempted those larger ones for a future time."

Still, this "future time" plan has the television industry worried. "It's just a temporary reprieve," says Jennifer Bemisderfer, a spokeswoman for the Consumer Electronics Association, which opposes the rule. "They intend to regulate larger sets, and when they do, it will effectively remove 100 percent of televisions over 60 inches."

How much energy could the rule really save?

"The rule will save 6515 gigawatt-hours annually once all existing stock is replaced, with overall savings of around $8.1 billion over the first 10 years," Gottlieb says.

Will energy-efficient sets present any downside to consumers?

It's difficult to tell. Televisions have continued to improve in efficiency, and it's likely that many sets would naturally fall under the guidelines by 2011. (Several hundred current sets would fare just fine under the proposed rule.)

But the CEA worries that energy-efficiency standards could stymie innovation. "We're going to see things like Internet-enabled TVs and 3D HDTVs slowed because of mandates like this," Bemisderfer says. "When you add more features and functionality to televisions, the energy use increases. Energy mandates also don't take into account product convergence, and could cause out-migration of some of those features into stand-alone boxes."

"I don't know if the new rules will affect TV quality, but there may be something to the brightness of sets," says Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis at the NPD Group. "For example, Panasonic has a technology that allows users to choose between standard brightness and half-energy use, or double brightness and full-energy use."

Furthermore, energy efficiency has become a perk that appeals to consumers. "The market has been responding to consumers' sentiment for greener electronics, with LCDs, which are more efficient than plasmas, really dominating the market now," Rubin says.

Will this make any particular television format obsolete?

Because the new standard does not distinguish between television technologies, it will likely place a greater burden on TVs that are naturally less efficient. That means that LCD and OLED makers will likely have an easier time adapting than companies that make plasma and rear-projection sets. Sales of plasma and rear-projection sets are now dwarfed by LCDs, and many TV makers (including Hitachi, Pioneer and Philips) have already either abandoned or will soon abandon plasma production entirely. That could leave companies such as Panasonic, which is one of the last major manufacturers still in the plasma game, feeling the brunt of the burden.

A Part of Hearst Digital Media
Popular Mechanics participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites.